


A Flowering of a New Era

by orphan_account



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-01-20
Updated: 2013-01-20
Packaged: 2017-11-26 06:16:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death, Underage
Chapters: 18
Words: 15,728
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/647477
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What happens when Persephone and Hades try to marry their kids, who are as different as night & day and want to kill each other?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

"Aurora, anything to add?" Mr. Terrence, our NHS leader and Junior Seminar teacher.

"Meeting adjourned?" I suggested sleepily, half asleep as I mumbled it. It was 7:30 AM and the only thing I had in my system was ice water. The $5 I had in my back pocket was itching to become to cups of badly made high school coffee that would scald your throat and shoot through you like a speed-skater on rockets, but woke your ass up in a  _heartbeat_.

The other 50+ students gathered here nodded and he dismissed us, shouting reminders about the Save a Highway by Planting a Tree trip that was planned for this Saturday all the way. I went to the cyberplace in our Information Center (AKA the library) and bought my coffee. As promised, it burned every taste bud I had and I had the squirts in no time, but now I was alive and functioning. Somewhat. The downside to how fast it left your system was that the caffeine kick was gone in an instant and left you more tired than before you drank it. Exhausted, I went to the band room and walked past Ms. P and into her office, curling up on the couch she had in there, quickly falling asleep.

The 5 minute bell rang, jarring me awake. I bolted upright, then froze as all of the blood rushed to my head. I debated getting up and making a mad dash for my locker, which was clear on the other side of campus. Even if I sprinted, I'd still be late and I couldn't have anymore tardies. I sighed, making my decision.

"Ms. P?" I called out of her office, "I'm not feeling first hour. I'm just not feeling it. Can you maybe...?" I trailed off.

"Call and excuse you? On it!" she called back. I heard her pick up the phone in the uniform room and say "Hello, this is Ms. Porello from the band room. I have Aurora May down here with me and she's helping me organize music for the band and setting up for next year since this one is ending. Please excuse her from class."

"Thank you Ms. P!" I called out.

"There's music that needs filing, copies that need to be made, and my computer's acting up again." She called back. I grimaced, but sat up and grabbed stacks of music and headed to the blue and gold room. I gazed at the file cabinets in resignment, and then set to work.

"Honey, you need to take a break." Sam said, watching me work. It was the middle of 3rd hour and I was in the middle of my Independent Study (IS) in the band room, sitting on the couch with a laptop on my lap. And no, in case you're wondering (and I know you are), I didn't skip out of my 2nd hour as well. I skipped my first hour and then went to calculus. My 3rd hour was just being in the band room and doing whatever odd and off-the-wall chores that needed to be done. I flipped the laptop over and began to connect wires, beginning to reassemble the computer. It burst into life and I put the bottom back on and shut it down.

"I'm fine Sam." I replied standing and stretching my legs, for I'd lost blood flow about 20 minutes back.

"Oh yeah?" he challenged. "When was the last time you ate?"

"I had some coffee from the cyberplace this morning after the NHS meeting." I offered, stealing Ms. Porello's keys and unlocking the blue and gold room once more, a stack of music in my arms that went from my hips to my chin.

"You need food…" he mused. "How about a flurry?"

I made a face. "At…"-I checked the time-"Eleven o' clock in the morning? I like ice cream, don't get me wrong, but that's going a little overboard. That's way too early in the morning for sugar and gummies."

"It's never too early for peanut-butter-chocolate-Oreo-and-gummy-bear deliciousness all mixed together." He declared, taking my hand and leading my away from the music piled 4 feet high that required my attention.

"Do you know if Mr. Carter's making his rounds?" I asked as he dragged me past and astounded choir and a bemused Ms. Porello. He shrugged and plowed on, taking me to the main lobby. We almost immediately ran into Mr. Baese, the principal of our school.

"Where you guys heading?" he asked lightly.

"Uh…Ms. Porello asked us to put a few things in her car." I invented quickly, showing him the music I hadn't had time to put down and the keys Sam clutched, thankful he had our school lanyard on them.

"And the money?" he asked, arching an eyebrow.

"Uh…" Sam shot me a worried glance. "We got bored?"

"Mhm…" he replied disbelievingly. "Carter's in Cold Hall. Take the Athletic Wing doors." Then, to my surprise, he dug out his wallet and handed us a 5 dollar bill. "Lotsa chocolate, ya hear? Needs to be back before my next meeting. Hurry." I froze, then snatched the money and ran, dragging Sam behind me.


	2. Chapter 2

Half of a hilarious hour later, Sam, Ms. P, and I were all sitting in her office, reclined on her couch and beanbags, eating. The awesome thing about Ms. P's office was that it didn't look like a band teacher's office. It looked like the den of a 14 year old teenager. She had no hard plastic chairs, no desk, no book shelves, and no desktop computer. She had a 17 inch plasma on a cardboard box full of the monstrous collection of DVD's, CD's, and video games that the band and choir had been amassing for about 2 ½ years. She had a Mac laptop that served as both her personal computer and her work computer. She had a mini-fridge prepared and fully stocked for the Armageddon and out percussionists. All of her furniture was throw pillows and beanbags with one tiny two-cushion couch.

Drew came in right then and saw us munching. "Aw, man! I missed a flurry run?" he whined. I smiled and passed him what was left of my flurry, which he devoured. Sam laughed.

"Don't worry your little sparkly ass." he teased. "We were just getting some food for our little girl here, who was starving herself."

"Hey!" I snapped. "I'm allowed to starve myself, so long as the time is used productively!"

"Hon, you'd cut out your heart and give it to a druggie so long as the surgery was done in a timely manner so you aren't late for your appointment with Saint Peter." Sam said.

I giggled, sounding uncommonly girly. "Says who I'm getting into Heaven, Samuel?"

Drew smiled. "She has a point."

School ended and I was walking to my car. The parking lot was nearly deserted since it was late. I unlocked my car and was getting in when I heard a low growl. I froze, then slowly got out. Looking back on it, it probably wasn't a good idea, but it'd been a long day and I had tons of exams coming up soon. I looked around, looking for some kind of dog that could have made that noise. Another growl sounded out, freezing me where I stood. I gazed around, searching one last time before I was officially creeped-out. It seems impossible, but a black dog appeared like a mirage. Out of thin air. It growled menacingly again and stepped forward, causing me to step back. It kept walking forward, it's eyes raging with pure fire, until I was backed up against my car in terror. Hot air blew out of it's nose, blowing my hair behind me.

"Aurora!" screamed a terrified voice. I turned to see a girl from my gardening club standing there, absolute terror on her face. I remembered her name was Clover and was very good with plants (which did me absolutely no good in my current situation, I know). I was about to tell her to run when I blacked out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this chapter is waaaaay short.


	3. Chapter 3

I woke up to Clover's panicky cries. I was in the passenger seat of my car and she was driving. She could barely keep her eyes on the road, for she was staring at me, concern in her emerald green eyes.

"Aurora, are you alright?" she asked.

"Just peachy!" I snapped. "Hunky dory! I'm corned by a huge-ass dog and black out almost everyday! This is routine for me. What are you talking about? This is all in a day's work for me."

"Am I sensing some sarcasm? I think I am." she snapped back. "I'm just trying to make sure you're okay. After a run-in with a hellhound, most half-bloods-"

"Whoa, wait a minute! After a run-in with  _what?_ " I asked in disbelief.

"A hellhound. They're monsters from Tartarus. They hunt half-bloods like you." Clover replied.

"Half-bloods?"I asked, confused.

"A demigod. Half-mortal, half-"

"Olympian god, I know. I'm a mythology buff. But what does that have to do with anything? They're myths. They don't exist."

"Oh, but they do. Your dad could tell you that, if you asked." she said.

"My dad? What does he have to do with anything?"

"Listen, if that monster was hunting you, then you're a half-blood. If you live with your dad, that means your mom is a goddess. You are a half-blood. That monster was hunting you." she said fiercely. "We need to get you to New York."

"What? Why?" I demanded.

"I don't know why, but your half-blood scent is just now showing up. It'll keep attracting monsters until one of them kills and eats you. There's a camp in NYC made especially for demigods. It's called Camp Half-Blood. It has protective borders that keep monsters out while you train so you won't die." she explained.

"Train?"

"How to kill monsters. Usually with a celestial bronze weapon, like a sword, but we do modify shotguns to shoot celestial bronze too."

"A sword?" I asked.

"You know how you're ADD and dyslexic?" she asked. I nodded. "The ADHD is your battle reflexes. Those keep you alive in a fight. The dyslexia is because you are hard-wired to read Ancient Greek and not English. It's why you excel in the band. It's mostly the old languages like Latin and Greek. You train with swords, knives, daggers, and bows because those are easier to understand for us. A child of Apollo is better at handling a bow because their father is the god of archery. See?"

"Not really." I replied. Out of curiosity, I asked "What age are demigods when their demigod scent shows up?"

"Your scent shows up when you find out you're a half-blood or after your first encounter, like in your case. This used to be usual. Claimed anywhere, anytime and left to fend for yourself. Some people weren't claimed until their 22nd birthday. But about 3 years ago, almost 4, a Big Three demigod changed that. Percy, a Son of Poseidon, led the army that defended Olympus against-"

"Whoa, back up. Explain."

Clover sighed. "A long time ago, during WWII, the Oracle of Apollo made a prophecy that a child of a Big Three god would decide the fate of Olympus. That was Percy. The Titan Kronos was trying to destroy Olympus and hunt demigods into extinction, but Percy was all like  _'slow your roll son'_

and took up arms to defend Olympus. He destroyed Kronos and saved the gods, along with most of Western Civilization. The gods offered him any gift he wanted, even godhood. But he turned them down, saying that they should claim their kids instead so there was never a rebellion again. So now all demigods are usually claimed around age 13."

"Claimed?" I asked.

"When a god names you their child. As soon as you know you're a demigod, your scent increases tenfold.  _That's_  why we have to get you to the camp." she replied.

We sat in silence until I remembered something that she'd said. "Wait,  _demigods_  fought for Kronos?"

She nodded sadly. "Legions of them. We barely won. They felt unloved, ignored, unwanted, and wronged by the gods and that gave them a furious strength. The swore allegiance to Kronos. That's why Percy made the gods swear on the River Styx to claim their kids before they turned 13."

And I was going to be 16 in a month.


	4. Chapter 4

Clover didn't take me to an airport, like I expected. I needed to get to New York, ASAP, and yet she took me to... _her house?_

I walked in. "Won't your parents mind?

"I live alone." she replied. When I turned around, she had furry goat legs, hooves, and teeny-tiny horns. I felt the blood rush to my head and swooned lightly, thinking I might collapse.

"You-You're" I choked.

"I'm a satyr. The only  _female_  satyr, I might add." she replied. "Why don't you sit down?" I replied by collapsing onto a chair, my head in my hands. Clover came up next to me and rubbed my back comfortingly, then said "I know it's a lot to take in. I've had since birth to get used to the idea of the gods existing; you haven't. Want an enchilada?"

I looked up at her. "Whose child am I?"

She looked at me in surprise. "I don't know. Most likely a child of Demeter, by your scent. The Harvest Goddess."

I sat back in my chair, shoulders slumping. Clover watched me, started to say something, then thought better of it and began to make enchiladas. After a while she set one in front of me and gestured for me to dig in, then attacked hers viciously. I slowly ate mine, and then sat back on her couch in front of the redundant fireplace. Clover was still watching me with a concerned look on her face.

"Have you ever heard a satryinan lullaby?" she asked.

"No." I replied. "Sorry."

"That's good." she replied. "Because this probably won't sound anything like one." Clover stood and went to the mantle, where a small box sat. She opened it and pulled out a strange looking instrument that looked like an upside down Y. She put it to her mouth and began to play a haunting melody.

The fireplace suddenly erupted into flames, but there was nothing to burn and it didn't emit heat. I jerked in surprise, but found myself unable to look away. Figures flickered to life and began to dash in, out, and around the towering walls of heat. They whooped as they ran. It seemed to be a battle scene, for the small figures clashed and some fell, slain. One figure seems to be leading them. I saw that it was a male, which was all I could see. His features were blurred and indecipherable. He was hacking down warriors to reach what appeared to be a prisoner. The prisoner was female and her arms were outstretched to either side of her, tied to horses ready to tear them off. I peered closer at the smoky beings and was given the surprise of my life: the prisoner was me. And the male…He wasn't anybody I knew, but he was handsome. He had shaggy hair and sharp features. His face was furious as he cut down men to reach 'me'. I tried to say something to Clover, but found myself unable to speak. Not like I was speechless or anything but as if I was physically restrained. Like someone had snuck up behind me and put their hand over my mouth.

Then everything went black.

I woke up to screaming. Well, not really screaming, it was yelling. I could distinguish Clover's voice and she was arguing with another. The loud voices were making my head hurt, so I groaned and covered my ears. The voices immediately ceased yelling and I sighed happily in relief. A split second later, Clover and another satyr whom I didn't recognize and looked a few years older than Clover burst into the room.

"Aurora, you're awake!" Clover cried. She ran forward and embraced me, crushing me to her.

"Yeah, I'm awake." I replied irritably. "Babe, my head hurts, don't talk so loud, okay?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, sure hon." She said. Her green eyes studied me anxiously. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. My head hurts like a sumabitch, but other than that, I'm all in one piece." I told her, feeling a little guilty over the trouble I was causing her. She'd barely known me, yet she'd dragged me away from my first hellhound attack, taken me home, fed me, lulled me to sleep, and then taken me to the only safe haven on earth for my 'kind' (which still felt weird to say).

"SEE?" Clover snapped triumphantly. "She's  _fine._  Therefore, I don't see why you're throwing such a huge fit over giving me my license!"

"It was still dark magic!" shouted the male satyr. "That and only satyrs can be allowed to be given a protector's license and there are no female satyrs,  _therefore you cannot be a satyr!_ "

Okay, that statement right there pissed me off. I know I didn't really know Clover all that well, but where did he get off on dissing her like that?

"Hold it," I interrupted him furiously, "right fucking there. Who the hell do you think you are? Look at her legs and hooves and horns! I'm damn sure that she's a satyr, female or not. _How dare you_  say that she's not!" I hopped off the examination table that I'd been sitting on and my legs almost immediately turned to Jell-O.

"And I'll tell you another thing!" I threatened. "As soon as I can stand normally." Clover helped me stand up and I leaned on her. I looked up at the satyr, whose mouth was fixed in a tiny  _o_ of surprise.

"As I was saying," I began with slightly-less conviction than before, "I'm  _here_  aren't I? Why should you care how she got me here, so long as she got me here  _safely?_  Isn't that what matters?"

The satyr was staring at me intently. He was obviously a satyr of power ( I didn't mean that sarcastically), for all of the satyr's present were staring at him, almost as if they were terrifies of what he might do.

The satyr of power (wow, that's hard to say  _without_  sounding sarcastic) suddenly laughed out loud. He laughed so hard he had to wipe tears from his eyes to speak to me. He laughed one more time, then dried his eyes.

"You've got spirit kid. I like that in a demigod. I'm Grover, a Lord of the Wild."

"Aurora May, the chittlen of whatever goddess decides to claim me as her own." I introduced myself lazily. Grover ordered food to be brought for me. Beautiful, elfin women that would have made me jealous any other day of my life brought the food in on trays. I was slightly unnerved by the way they bowed to me as if I were royalty. I watched them leave when Clover spoke.

"The nymphs know something. Your mom might be someone whom the nymphs serve or respect." She commented quietly. "Or fear."


	5. Chapter 5

"Let's show you Camp Half-Blood!" said an old man in a wheelchair. He had a kind face and warm, caring eyes to match his sunny smile. I gave him just as bright a smile.

"Alright." I replied. He gently took my hand and led me down the hallway and out of the house we were in. I was taken to the porch where my breath was taken away.

Camp Half-Blood was beautiful. Rolling green hills and clear blue skies. You could see a glittering lake in the distance. The camp was milling with people. The pavilion looked tall and majestic. There were dozens of cabins, shaped like an omega. There was a swordplay arena, an archery field, horse stables, and what appeared to be a mountain with lava dripping down it.

"Amazing, isn't it?" Grover asked, coming up next to me. I nodded wordlessly. I stood there before stepping off of the porch and walking. Grover opted to show me around and the man thanked him.

"Where to first?" I asked.

"Well….Wanna meet the Hero of Olympus?" he asked, barely concealing his excitement.

I frowned. "The Hero of-You mean Percy?"

He nodded. "He works here in the camp as the swordsmaster and the pegasi caretaker."

I frowned again. "A legendary hero who saved all of the god's very endangered godly bacon…working in the horse stables? Seems wrong somehow."

"He has an affinity with equines because"-Grover started.

"His dad created horses out of the crests of waves." I finished for him. "I know my mythology."

He smiled. "Very impressive." He led me to the stables and through a maze of stalls and eventually we came upon a person. He appeared to be in his late teens or early twenties. He had jet black hair and hard sea-green eyes. He was well-muscled and strong. He had a lopsided smile and a sword hanging off his hip. A bale of hay was slung on his shoulder.

"Hey Grover," he said casually, "New demigod?"

"Yep. Clover brought her in from Wyoming." Grover replied. "Is Justice okay?"

"Fine. She's going to give birth later on tonight. The pegasi students are going to help." the man replied, if only a little excited. His gaze turned to me. "Hey. I'm Percy, the pegasi caretaker and swordsmaster."

 _This_  was Percy? The one who'd taken on a Titan at age 16 and sent him packing after whooping his ass?  _This_  stringy (kinda hot) twig was the legendary Son of Poseidon? He looked like he was barely out of high school! I'd been expecting some beefy dude, 6 foot and maybe 350 pounds. Instead he was lanky, barely 5''5', maybe 170-180 pounds. Jeesh, talk about a reality check.

"Uh, Aurora." I said lamely.

"Nice to meet you Aurora. Don't be a stranger; I like having company when working with the pegasi." He replied, his lopsided smile growing. A black pegasi neighed impatiently and a scowl immediately darkened Percy's face.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" He snapped. "Don't get your tail in a twist! Gods, you're getting so needy nowadays! Jeez!" He walked over to him and discarded the hay in his stall. He spread it around and it took ten minutes before he was satisfied.

"She'll be coming back anyway Percy." Grover said, annoyed. "She'll need a weapon."

"She can get one right now." Percy replied. I remembered he was the swordsmaster as well as the pegasi caretaker. He beckoned me with one hand and led me to a shed. Inside the shed were dozens (and I mean dozens) of weapons. They lined every available space on the wall. Percy turned to me.


	6. Chapter 6

"Do you prefer to stay at a distance with your enemies or do you want to get all up in their business?" he asked.

I shrugged. "I don't really have any enemies."

"Every demigod has enemies Aurora, whether you know it or not." He replied, eyeing the weapons seriously. "So, which is it?"

I rolled my eyes. "In that extremely hypothetical case that I pissed someone off or someone pissed me off? I guess I'd like to knock them on their asses myself, so up close and personal."

He smiled. "So you'll be a hand-to-hand combat person. That means you'll fight with a dagger, knife, or sword. Spears can be used for hand-to-hand combat too, but they're usually used for long-distance throws." Percy strolled up to a wall of blades and selected one, handing it to me. The sword was  _way_  too heavy, so I shook my head and passed it back to him. He handed me almost every sword in that shed. There were only, like, two or three that he didn't because he already knew that they would be way too heavy for me because he couldn't lift them himself. He told me that the Ares cabin mostly used those. We tried daggers, but none seemed to fit right. Knives had the same result. We even tried long distance weapons like bow and spears, but it seemed that no weapon in that shed was right for me. After every weapon possible was tried, Percy turned to me sighing.

"Looks like you're gonna have to forge your own weapon. Choosing a weapon is all about the most natural fit and it will end up being an extension of your body in battle. If none of these fit right, you don't want to use them or you'll get cut down in a heartbeat." He told me, locking up the shed. I nodded and said goodbye, letting Grover lead me away and finish my tour. He was leading me towards the Big House when Clover ran up.

"Aurora, come quick!" she gasped, panting for a breath.

"What did you do?" Grover demanded angrily.

Clover ignored him. "We've been looking for you for five minutes. Something showed up for you at the Big House! Chiron thinks it's from your parent!"

"Chiron?" I asked.

"The man in the wheelchair. He's actually a centaur, but he just compacts his horse half into a wheelchair the first time a demigod meets him so that they don't freak out." Grover explained.

"Never mind that! Come on!" Clover whined, dragging me up to the porch steps. I barged into the sitting room, where a bunch of people were sitting around a box, staring at it as if it were cursed. I impatiently shoved past them and grabbed the card off the top, reading it quickly. I felt the blood drain from my face and then tore the box open violently. I ripped through it until I found what was enclosed.

I pulled out a beautiful sword. The blade appeared to be made out of 4 metals spiraled together, then hammered into a razor sharp blade. They led back to a gorgeous ebony wood hilt that fit my hand perfectly. Silver was embedded in the hilt and it twisted around in a double helix until it reached the bottom of the hilt, where a ruby rose glowed in the light. The sheath was equally as beautiful and had my name carved on it in flawless calligraphy.

"Who's it from?" Clover asked in a hushed voice.

"Jesus Christ is your godly parent Hephaestus?" asked another chick.

"My godly parent is a female. It's from my mom." I replied, still staring at the sword.

"You just go the mother-load. That sword had celestial bronze, stygian iron, imperial gold,  _and_ steel in it. How the hell was that even made?" asked another kid, awed. I just turned my attention to the note again, unable to believe what it said.

 _Dearest Aurora,_  read the card. I  _want to name you as mine in pride. But unfortunately, you can't be. I want to be there in person and see you. You have a destiny in my home, as do other demigods with their parents. You must first sojourn to my home before you can face your companions. In three days' time, a demigod will come to you and bring you to your new home. I'd hidden you in the hopes you would live a perfectly normal life and never have to have this put on you, but my hope died quickly. Train yourself and await my call._

_With love,_

_Your Mother_

I stared at the card for a moment, back at the sword, back at the card, then felt my legs fold beneath me as I sat down hard on the ground.


	7. Chapter 7

**THREE DAYS LATER**

I'd been training non-stop for three days. My body was slowly changing from soft skin to hardened muscle. Instead of being trained by a senior counselor, I was being trained by Percy and his girlfriend, Annabeth, a daughter of Athena. She insisted that if I only had 3 days here, then I should cram all I could. I was able to cut out a few activities. I lived in Wyoming on a farm, so I rode horses a lot. Check off pegasi riding. I also hunted with my dad (who never really came home from Wood Stock), so I could cross off archery. I was a mythology buff and so obsessive that I'd taught myself to read Ancient Greek. Scrawl out studying. Really all I had to do was learn to fight, a few arts and crafts (Percy insisted), and pull my own weight around the Hermes cabin for 3 days. Pretty easy, or so it might sound. If you think it's easy, you have obviously never been inside the Hermes cabin.

I'd decided to skip arts and crafts (it was a complete waste of time in my opinion) and was wandering through the trees. My orange Camp Half-Blood t-shirt and borrowed jeans (ratty and torn up-just my style) drew the attention of the monsters to me as I walked. I could see their glowing red eyes waiting for me to drop my guard so they could rip me to pieces, so I kept my sword unsheathed and at the ready. The sight of the 4 metals glowing together was enough to make most of them retreat, but some of them were persistent and stayed. Luckily I came across a lighted glade and sighed in relief. Monsters are weakened by the day and hated direct sunlight, preferring to stay to the shadows. One weak demigod wasn't worth venturing into the light for. I knelt by the stream and went to dip my hand in, but then remembered what Percy told me. Naiads were getting sick of us demigods and mortals forgetting how powerful they were and were falling back into their old habits of cursing those who didn't ask permission to take from them.

"Uh, hey. I was just wondering if I could have a drink." I asked. I felt like a moron, talking to water, but I didn't really wanna get cursed, so I told myself to roll with it.

A girl popped up. The stream was only maybe a foot deep, yet the water was up to her chest. Where the water and her skin met, they seemed to blend and become one entity.

"Thanks for asking. The people now are so…ugh. I don't even know how to describe it. They should be cursed, just to teach them a lesson." She said. "Since you were polite, here."

She waved her hand and a part of her already pristine stream became even cleaner and seemed to offer them to me. I took a sip and she disappeared. I turned and began to walk again, only to hear a loud crack beneath me and look down in surprise. I was standing in a bunch of dead flowers. I felt a twinge of sadness and reached down. I cupped one pitifully brown stem, wishing I could have seen it in full bloom.

Suddenly, the flower grew and brightened. The once flakey petals were now full and waxy, as if in their prime. The stem was a strong, rich green. I'd healed the flower. I was staring at in in amazement when someone interrupted my dumbfounded reverie.

"Holy Zeus!" they breathed. I turned to see a boy my age wearing a Green Day t-shirt, black skinny jeans, tennis shoes, and a black bombers jacket. A black metal sword hung at his side and it appeared to be the same as one of the four metals in my sword. I was assuming stygian iron. He had short, spiky hair and pale white skin as if he never saw sunlight, EVER. His eyes were dark and fathomless with just a touch of madness that seemed incredibly sexy somehow. In surprise, I dropped the flower. Without warning, the entire flowerbed erupted into full bloom.

"Who are you?" he demanded. If my father had taught me anything, it was you don't talk to strangers. Especially emo ones who somehow just randomly show up in the middle of a monster infested forest, according to all of my new demigod friends.

"I ain't telling you shit until I know who you are and where the hell you came from!" I snapped back, letting a prissy and prep-ish tone heat my voice so I sounded petty and whiny.

He laughed, which was surprisingly beautiful. "That's exactly where I'm from. I came from hell. My names Nico. Nico di Angelo."

I froze. "The Son of Hades?"

He nodded. "And you?"

I stared at him for a long time until I muttered grudgingly "Aurora May."

His eyes widened. "You're Aurora?"

"Yeah, why?" I asked suspiciously, my hand automatically going for my sword (a habit that was quickly being pounded into my head by all of the half-bloods I spent time with).

He saw and a crease wrinkled his brow. "Where did you get that sword?"

"Why?" I asked again, this time more demanding than asking.

"WHERE?" he yelled. "WHERE IN HADES DID YOU GET THAT SWORD?" I took a step back, my hand curling around the hilt. I didn't reply because, quite frankly, he looked violent and I didn't want to get into it in the middle of the woods with a more skilled swordsman.

"I asked you a question: where did you get that fucking sword? Tell me right now or I'll run you through with mine." He ground out, his teeth clenched. I opened my mouth to reply that until he lowered his voice and told me how the hell he knew who I was, I wasn't telling him anything about me, but footsteps interrupted me. I turned around to see Percy with an armada of demigods and nature spirits behind him, all heavily armed.

"Nico?" Percy asked, apparently surprised. "What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be in the Underworld with your dad?"

Nico scowled and I got the impression that he usually scowled and almost never smiled. "My stepmom sent me on an errand to get a demigod she wants to speak with."

Everyone was quiet as he said that, but when they put the pieces together that he was here,  _three days after I was and here to get a demigod_ , they all erupted into objections. They wouldn't quiet until Nico gave a almost silent order that made it pin-drop silent.


	8. Chapter 8

"Quiet." He said. Almost immediately, they all fell silent and stared at him in fright. Michael, a Son of Ares who was for some reason insanely in love with me, reached for me and for once, I actually wanted to go to him. I started forward, but Nico suddenly had a bruising grip on my arm. When I tried to get him to let go, he glared at me and twisted my arm. I gasped in pain.

"Let go!" I whimpered. "Please!"

"Nico, don't break her wrist!" Annabeth chided him. She too reached for me and this time I put up a fight, struggling for her hand. Nico kept me pulled just out of all of their grip. I changed my tack, reaching solely for Percy, hoping he would talk some sense into his cousin and save my wrist.

His hand immediately found mine and he tried to tug me towards him. "Thanks for bringing her back. Aurora, we were all scared sick!" he chastened me. I hung my head and my friends scrambled to pull me into their embrace. Nico roughly yanked me back and spun me so that he was between me and (if I had anything to say about it) my soon-to-be-rescuers.

"I didn't bring her back Percy. If you have any brains at all, you should know by now that I've been instructed to do the exact opposite." Nico growled, obviously not willing to let me go so easily (yeah, cuz he worked  _SO_  hard to find me). "She needs to go to the Underworld with me."

"Nico, she's barely trained! Why the hell are you throwing such a shit fit over this? She can't leave!" Annabeth snapped.

"She can and she will!" Nico growled at her. Percy reacted almost immediately. I was assuming that he didn't like people taking that tone with his girlfriend, for he went for his sword, almost taking it out but leaving it for Nico hadn't truly threatened anyone. Nico flinched, but left his sword be. I guessed he knew how good Percy was and didn't really feel like getting cut into bite sized bits.

"Nico," he said quietly, "she's untrained. She's vulnerable and a liability. Leave her here."

"I CAN'T!" Nico snarled. "If I do, I'm a fucking grease-spot on the carpet! Hades will KILL me just for being late, let alone coming back empty-handed!" Percy stared at him for a while and I got the feeling that while Nico may usually be surly and a bit emo, his temper never flared like that or at least it didn't often.

"Nico," Annabeth asked slowly, "what does Hades"-

"That's none of your DAMN BUSINESS!" Nico screamed at her.

"Nico, she's just trying to"-I began, but he squeezed my wrist painfully.

"It shouldn't matter to you either!" He snapped.

"Oh, it shouldn't matter? Oh you mean like how it shouldn't matter to her that you're trying to drag her down to the Underworld, knowing your dad is a conniving asshole?" Percy said sarcastically. "Why don't you tell her the whole truth so we don't have a repeat episode of what happened the last time I believed a word you said? When I ended up locked in his dungeons?"

Nico flinched, overwhelming guilt covering his face. I got the feeling that Nico didn't really want to be reminded of that. Percy had just pulled his biggest ace and Nico's grip slackened on my wrist. His face fell and I swear his eyes started to water, though when I asked about it later he vehemently denied it. Micheal slid a little closer, reaching for me, but I put my hands behind my back.

"Low blow Percy. Low blow. That was just mean." I said softly, gazing at Nico's broken face. "Beside's, you're forgetting that he's on time. It's been three day's Percy. If he was sent to get me, then I have to go. I can't just disobey a god's order."

"Yeah you can. We do it all the time." said Alexis, a Daughter of Hermes. "Come on back over here."

"I can't"- I started, but was interrupted by Nico.

"They're right." He muttered miserably. "You could just stay here and I'll go back to face whatever punishment my parents have thought up. They'll come for you eventually and you'll have to leave then, but at least you'll get a little bit more time."

"I can't Nico." I replied softly. "I was told that I was leaving today, I should leave today."

He looked up, incredulous, as Percy said "Aurora, you don't know what Hades is like! Take his offer and stay here. You'll get another week at least to train!"

"And leave Nico to take the punishment of  _your_  stubbornness? Oh hell to the no. I don't think so." I told him, making my voice cold and hardened.

"He's playing the sympathy card! He knows you'll come if he'll get in trouble!" Michael snapped.

"Maybe he is, maybe he isn't. Either way, I don't want to find out and I'll have to leave eventually. It might as well be now." I replied. Nico stood and I actually saw tears of gratitude in his eyes. I offered him my hand and he took it gratefully. I flinched; his hand was ice-cold now. He proceeded to drag me into a shadow and I screamed bloody murder as the darkness rushed at me.


	9. Chapter 9

I felt like my face was peeling off as we shadow-traveled to the Underworld. I wanted to scream, but my throat wouldn't force the sound out. When we arrived at our destination, I tripped and stumbled, falling against him before slithering to the ground dizzily. Nico knelt and I thought he might help me up. Instead he was facing two barren thrones, his head bowed. The room was empty except for us, just like the thrones. I gazed at Nico in confusion, but he didn't move. The air around the smaller of the two thrones shimmered and a woman appeared on it. She looked at Nico, her irritation and distaste with him obvious. She turned to me and her face softened, a small smile curving her mouth.

"Aurora," she whispered, "My, how you've grown."

"Thank-you?" I replied slowly, getting more befuddled by the minute. Nico seized at my side, as if I'd done something wrong. The woman's smile just grew.

"The last time I saw you, I was leaving you in your father's arms, merely four hours old." She said softly, tears starting to run down her face. I realized who she was. Persephone, the Goddess of spring and light; the Queen of the Underworld. "I've missed you so much my darling."

"M-Mom?" I stuttered. She nodded, acknowledging my statement slightly.

"I leave the Underworld in two days. I couldn't wait till then to see you again. After 15 years…" she sighed. "I wanted to see you so much so I sent  _him_." She waved a hand in Nico's direction and said  _him_  like it was a disease. The air shimmered once more and a man appeared on the larger throne. He had long greasy hair (which dimly reminded me of Snape from Harry Potter) and pale skin. He had dark eyes and a scowl plastered to his face. He looked bizarrely like Nico, or rather, Nico looked bizarrely like him, minus the fact that Nico had bathed recently. This must be Hades, the God of the Underworld. He was in direct contrast to his wife, who looked like me (or I looked like her, since she was my mother). Persephone had long black curly hair, tan skin, warm brown eyes, and a sweet smile.

He grunted. "She looks just like you."

"That she does." Persephone replied. I glanced at Nico again. He was standing now, his face carefully blank. He refused absolutely to meet his father's gaze.

"She's here; can I go now?" he demanded. Hades glowered at him, but none the less dismissed him.

"I must apologize for my son; he becomes more like me with every passing day. When you only have the dead to talk to, you become increasingly antisocial." Hades apologized.

"I've know you 5 seconds and already I like you better than him." I muttered. The faint ghost of a smile appeared on his face, but was quickly extinguished.

"What happened to your wrist?" he asked quietly. I glanced down. A bright red band that was quickly turning a blue-ish purple color encircled my arm where Nico had grabbed me.

"It was Nic- I mean its nothing. I bruise easily." I stammered.

"Do you mean to say that NICO did that?" Persephone demanded softly.

"It happened when we were shadow-traveling. It's nothing." I insisted. "I've gotten worse on the farm at home." It was a total lie, not mentioning the drama that had occurred t Camp Half-Blood. I was lucky both wrists weren't bruised.

Hades looked at me disbelievingly, as if he knew I was lying. "That will be dealed with promptly. Your mother would like to give you an offer." He nodded to Persephone and she picked up where he left off.

"You are welcome to stay here in the Underworld. The above world cannot prepare you for a destiny down here. The seasons are also reversed. What is winter up there is summer down here. The Underworld will need a feminine touch while I'm away. Can you imagine what would happen with just Nico and Hades down here for company?" she offered, giggling at the end. She said it in such a way that I had to giggle too. "My offer is that you eat six pomegranate seed and stay in the Underworld during the summer of the above world. Or, since I will not force you to stay down here, I can return you to Wyoming and your father."

Hmmm, here, where I would be free to bask in the glorious Underworld sunlight and do whatever the hell I wanted when it came to mind, or I could go back to Wyoming where my loving and devoted father awaited my return? It wasn't a hard choice for a responsibility ridden teenager. I could do absolutely nothing except enjoy myself and use my natural birth-given powers to make it spring, or I could return to Wyoming in time for my Saturday highway cleanup and then have an FFA meeting on Sunday, and then be saddled with activity after activity with my friends, teachers, and community during the weekdays. What would you have picked?

"Your only responsibility will be to sometimes hear the petitions of the dead when I am away and to spread light and life, which, correct me if I'm wrong, radiate form you naturally?" Hades pointed out. I blushed and nodded. "It will lift the spirits of the dead immensely to know that Persephone's young is among them."

"Alright, where's the pomegranate? I'll do it." I replied.

Hades apparently had the same creepy smile as his son. Or Nico had his-oh forget it. You know what I mean.


	10. Chapter 10

**FOUR WEEKS LATER:**

"Go to hell Nico!" I shrieked.

"I've got news for you sweetheart: I LIVE THERE!" he yelled back.

"I'M NOT YOUR SWEETHEART!" I screamed.

"Kids, do we really have to go through this today?" Hades demanded, rubbing his temples. I got the feeling that if it would do any good, he would put a gun through his teeth and end it all.

"Tell her not to be such a bitch!" Nico snarled.

"Tell him not to be such an asshole!" I demanded.

"Enough. This ends NOW." Hades said, glaring at both of us. Nico immediately quieted, but he had no effect on me. "What is your problem?"

"She acts like she's my mother or something." Nico said, disgusted.

"Well someone has to be." I reasoned. "And besides, in case you missed it, I'm stuck down here until December 21 'mothering' the entire UNDERWORLD! That was the deal when I ate those fucking seeds!" Just talking about them was quite frankly making me sick to my stomach, reminding me how I'd puked up most of my insides after eating them.

"What about you trying to slit my throat? The poison? The  _attempted strangulation?_ " He snapped.

"Well, now you know not to piss me off. I may be small, but I'm super-fly TNT honey." I replied, smug.

He snorted. "Highly doubt it. You're itty-bitty. Not very much of a threat."

I smiled the creepy smile I'd picked up from them. "Dynamite comes in small packages,  _sweetheart._ "

See, this was how most of our fights went (minus the few midnight attempted assassinations on my part that he'd mentioned). We'd argue, Hades would intervene, and then we'd just end up bullshitting until Hades got tired of us and sent us away. Right now Nico was struggling not to smile and losing with flying colors. I smiled too and tried not to giggle, but that was my losing fight and I lost it right in front of them. When I finally reined myself in, they were staring at me as if I had a third head.

"But still," I gasped, "I told you to go to hell."

Nico gave in and smiled broadly at me. "Only if you'll be my plus one."

"Thought I already was." I snorted. He slid out of his chair and offered me his arm. I laughed and swung up, accepting it. I laughed again, unable to contain myself at the astounded look on Hades face as we walked past him. Since most of my regular clothes had yet to be retrieved from Wyoming, I wore traditional Greek robes like Hades.

"Shall I have a groom saddle Orion and Diablo?" Nico asked invitingly.

"No saddle for me." I replied. He nodded and clicked his fingers at his personal servant, Tom.

Kay, the news on Tom. Tom was a mortal who had died in gods-only-know-what-country (literally, only the gods knew) a long time ago. But the thing was, Tom was kind of a hardcore stoner. So when he finally OD'ed, he'd been stoned out of his freaking mind and since Hades had a since of humor (that was kind of twisted), he was still high. And seriously loopy. Nico had him as his personal servant just for shits and giggles. Tom did everything ass-backwards as a result of his continuing high and wasn't very much of a help to anything, so Nico usually ended up doing everything himself. I had yet to be given the choice of a servant. Nico and I were placing bets on if the horses were saddled or not when we arrived at the stables.

And they were saddled. Luckily, Tom could fulfill the simplest tasks, so long as you didn't have a specific way of doing things (so basically he can't do anything I ask him to) and asking a groom to saddle a horse and then put a bridle on the other was easy. Nico turned to me a victorious smile on his face. "Pay up."

"What are the odds?" I groaned, pulling out the two drachmas I'd bet that Tom didn't do it and we had to give the order's ourselves. Nico boosted me up onto Diablo and then swung up onto Orion's saddle.

Once far enough away from the palace, Nico chuckled quietly to himself. When I asked, he said "It's funny how we get along just fine when we're not around my dad."

"He's an instigator." I suggested quietly. We laughed (barely) at the small joke and I uncomfortably shrugged, trotting to a few feet away from him, but staying at a respectable distance. Although he did try to make an effort at polite conversation (you had to give him the credit) it was tiresome and a struggle between us. He was used to absolute freedom and not playing babysitter, allowed to sulk in his dark and dank emo corners while I was used to rigid schedules, babysitting anything from a plant to an actual baby and being very outgoing. We were totally cramping each others style and it was painfully obvious.

Besides, I didn't see why I even needed a babysitter. Hades' had said it was only until I was used to the layout of the Underworld, but I could navigate the damned place (no pun intended) in my sleep. Why would I need Nico following me around just to say "Don't go into Tartarus" when my common sense could have told me as much? Or why couldn't he go down into the forges like he wanted and I couldn't just spend all day in Elysia with all of the souls in the Maidens' Field? It made absolutely no sense and yet though we'd both pointed it out; Hades refused to lift the rule and was threatening to make us share a room if we didn't pipe down. I was scared he might handcuff us together and make it a 24/7 deal so I'd dropped the subject and had decided to roll with it, but that didn't stop Nico from muttering about it loudly when he knew his father could hear him. But still, even though I'd drawn a map-FROM MEMORY-of the Underworld and several minor deities and Nico had declared it correct and pretty accurate, he insisted that Nico accompany me everywhere I wanted to go and do anything that struck my fancy at the drop of a hat. If I wanted to do gymnastics or garden or dance, or do any of my girly activities but then suddenly I wanted to spar or play a joke on the spirits or I wanted to annoy Charon in a moment's notice, Nico was required to be present at all times and assisting when needed.

Raise your hand and say  _aye_  if you think it makes sense. Nobody? That's right. Because it doesn't make sense AT ALL.


	11. Chapter 11

"What're we doing today?" Nico asked tiredly.

"I know! We'll get to know each other." I said, earning me a small glare from him. Since out time together was mostly spent trying to kill each other the most we knew about each other was where our most vital spots were and where it would hurt most, this would be a very educational experience.

"Fine, whatever." He groaned, smoothly dismounting. He came over and politely held Diablo's reins while I climbed down. I helped him tether the horses and sat down in the soft grass of Elysia. He settled down next to me and eyed me warily.

"What do you want to know?" he asked tiredly, as if this were a chore for him.

"What's your favorite song?" I asked.

"Little Piece of Heaven by Avenged Sevenfold." He answered automatically. "Yours?"

I thought about it. "Probably First Suite in E Flat for Military Band by Holst."

He blinked. "And that is  _what_ , exactly?"

"A classical piece." I replied. "Hmm…what's your favorite color?"

He shrugged. "Red, maybe. I don't really have one. Let me guess, yours is pink?"

I smiled. "Actually, it's amethyst purple. It's my dad's birthstone."

"Huh. I had you pegged as a pink person. What's  _your_ birthstone?"

It was my turn to shrug. "I don't know exactly. It's something like a pearl or something."

"Mine's garnet." He offered. That was the first he offered information without prompting or a question and I moved on with renewed vigor.

"Favorite hobby?" I demanded.

"Practicing my sword fighting." He replied, and then looked at me expectantly.

"Gardening, dancing, working with my dad, and then fairs and carnivals." I supplied, listing off my top four favorites. "What's your favorite place?"

He mumbled something that I couldn't hear and I asked him to repeat. I asked him to repeat it. He glared at me and said "Anywhere but here."

"Home's mine." I said softly. "During the summer my dad and I will go to mud bogs and roll the quads and bale hay. During the winter we're holed up in the house together watching movies, drinking cocoa and eating popcorn and gingerbread cookies, wrapping presents."

"Eating popcorn and cocoa together?" he asked, wrinkling his nose. I elbowed him.

"Don't make fun of my traditions." I scolded.

He shrugged. "Never the less, it sounds fun. I don't have anything like that." I looked at him questioningly. "My mom died when I was young. And this isn't your typical home."

"Oh…I'm sorry. I didn't know." I murmured. He shrugged. "I was too young to remember it. Next question?"

"Um…Your favorite food?" I asked.

"Steak." He replied without a pause.

I wrinkled my nose. "Ew, no. Give me a salad anyday."

He chuckled, but then suddenly looked up. "Oh, hey Virgil. So you finally decided to show?"


	12. Chapter 12

I looked up to see a boy towering above me. He had the same pale skin Nico did and long black hair with a blood red streak through it. He wore luminous, white pants weighed down by chains. He had a sword strapped to his hip that had an empty globe on the end of it that had a rusty material in it. I had the sinking feeling I didn't want to know what it was. On his back were ginourmous black wings that went from his shoulder blades to the ground. He was shirtless to show off the tattoo that traveled up his left arm, across his shoulder, up to his chin, and down his torso. On the right side of his neck were Greek letters, which my brain instantly translated to "As I walk through the Valley of the Shadow of Death I shall fear no Evil". He had blood red eyes, one of which was marred by a scar that ran from the top right corner of his forehead, across his right eye, across the bridge of his nose, and down to the left hand corner of his jaw.

He noticed me staring. "I got bitch-slapped by Kronos' scythe."

I snorted and even Nico smiled. Virgil sat down next to us and he and Nico began to bullshit, as if ignoring the fact that I was here.

"Uh," I interrupted, "Nico? Why did you say that he finally decided to show up?"

Nico smiled even bigger as Virgil scowled. "Virgil's your unofficial bodyguard on my father's orders. He's been putting it off as long as possible, but he still has to obey

Hades' dictions."

I huffed. "I don't need a bodyguard."

Nico shrugged. "Maybe you do, maybe you don't. Either way, Hades is oddly protective of you and Virgil is under specific orders. You're stuck with each other."

Virgil and I scowled at each other. I hated it when people considered me a fragile doll and I'm guessing that being put on babysitting duty wasn't helping Virgil's mood. Nico just seemed kind of smug as I moodily returned to my questions, which were less enthusiastic and kind of stupid. When was his birthday (January 28th), who was his closest friend (used to be Percy, but they hit a rough patch), how old was he (16 next January), stuff like that. We'd been gradually warming up to each other, but when Virgil arrived, he'd shut down again. It was like he didn't want to have Virgil see him actually having a decent conversation with someone.

"Hey Virgil." I said. "Could you give us some privacy?"

"I'm not allowed to leave your side." He replied, monotone.

I felt my anger spark, just barely igniting. "I wasn't asking; I was telling."

Virgil stared me down. "I have orders to not leave you alone."

"Yeah, well, you know what Virgil! Suck my invisible and nonexistent dick! Let me handle Hades. Just give us five minutes, okay? That's all I'm asking for. Five minutes! Honestly, what do you think is going to happen with me sitting firmly on my ass in the middle of Elysium next to the Son of Hades?" I snapped. Virgil glared at me, and then stalked off. I turned to Nico, who mock-bowed to me.

"I grudgingly give you my permanent respect. Virgil's a Fury. He's been a little bad-tempered since he did some stuff that got his name blasted from mythology. It takes guts to bitch Virgil out."

"Are you scared of him?" I asked playfully. He just shot me a look that left me still unsure if he was or not.

"So why'd you send him over there?" Nico asked.

I shrugged. "So I need a reason? Maybe I just enjoy your company."

"Aurora, you repeatedly tired to kill me."

I sighed. "Fine. I just wanted to talk to you alone. Is that such a crime?"

He wrinkled his nose. "Why do you want to talk to me? Or did you miss the 'you've tried to kill me repeatedly part of the conversation' we had earlier?"

That was when we got into it.

"Oh, so I can't enjoy a conversation with someone I live with without killing them? Gods, didn't know you liked it that much!" I said sarcastically.

His face screwed up into a nasty…I don't know what to call it, I just know that it was a facial expression that he really shouldn't make because it ruins his face. "See, now you're just becoming a bitch again. Why do you have to be like that? Gods, I"-

"Fuck you!" I snarled, leaping for his throat. That was when Virgil appeared. He was there faster than I could've thought possible. He wrapped his hands around my waist and hauled me backwards off of Nico, taking my sword out of my hands and keeping a firm grip on me as he set me down several feet away.

"'What could happen?'" he demanded through clenched teeth. "A lot of things could happen, that's what!" I blew my hair moodily out of my face and stomped over to Diablo, swinging up onto his back. I was about to kick him into a gallop when Nico suddenly yelled "Hey! It's your birthday tomorrow, isn't it?"

"Why do you care?" I snapped, glaring over my shoulder at him.

But he was correct. Tomorrow, June 21st, I turned sixteen years old.


	13. Chapter 13

"Aurora, your belongings have arrived." Vigil announced quietly from my doorway. I nodded tiredly and climbed off my bed and went down from my (ironical) tower bedroom to the place where my belongings sat. I'd been exhausted and stressed out and at my wits end until I saw my stuff sitting there. Then I squealed like a little kid in a candy store and ran at it, pawing through my beloved clothes. Eventually I stopped because nothing looked like a suitable birthday outfit.

"Rora, babe, is that you?" I heard. I turned and saw my dad, farmers tan and all.

"Daddy!" I cried. I hopped up and embraced him, his worn flannel shirt and battered up Levi's smelling like the hot Wyoming air I hadn't realized I was pining away for. "What are you doing here?"

"Hey darlin'. I couldn't break my promise, so I told them I was gonna see you no matter what. Hades was real nice about the whole thing. Plus, you know I always give you your birthday present in person." He replied, producing a box out of no where. "It's from everybody." Everybody meaning the entire effing city, I smiled and shook in anticipation. He teased me with it (as usual) until I whined "DADDY!" (as usual) and he gave it to me.

"Oh, it looks so pretty." I breathed, gently plucking the bow off. "I wouldn't want to...destroy it!" On the words 'destroy it' I began to violently tear the box open. After a few hectic moments of me chewing the box open with my teeth, I uncovered my birthday gift.

My dad had probably known I wouldn't be able to find the perfect outfit, so he'd gotten me one. I now had a chocolate brown tank top, a mint green/brown plaid shirt to go over it, and a new pair of roping jeans. I squealed and then hugged my dad. "I'm gonna go try them on!"

I quickly ran up the stairs to my bedroom, blowing past Virgil. I stripped out of my traditional Greek robes and slid into my new outfit. I ran back downstairs (once again surprising Virgil) and straight into my dad's arms. He laughed, gave me another bear hug, then held me at arms length.

"You look just like how a farm girl should." he approved. "Alright, well be good. Hades tells me you have a busy day ahead of you."

"You're leaving?" I asked sadly. "But you just got here."

"I have to Rora." He replied. "Oh, which reminds me. Two things. One is this." he dug in his pocket for a moment before withdrawing my beaten and battered iPod touch. "And two..." he reached up and took his worn cowboy hat, the one I'd loved for almost forever, off his head and placed it on mine.

"Dad!" I said, shocked. "Your hat!"

"You got your first muffler burn from the quad last summer. Its been put off a little too long and if you're going away from your old man, at least take this." I took it reverently and kissed my dad in a farewell before he was led away by Virgil. Just then, Hades appeared. He saw my outfit.

"So you spoke with your father?" he asked.

"Yep." I smiled at Hades, who bowed his head in acceptance of my silent thank you, then went to leave. "Hades, wait."

He looked at me. "Yes Aurora?"

"Thanks for letting me see my dad. I know mortals aren't supposed to come down here unless they're dead." I told him quietly. He nodded once more.

"Aurora," he said suddenly, "since today is the summer solstice, and your birthday, I have a gift of my own. I'll let you and a person of your choice go to the above world for 24 hours to do as you please while I attend the summer solstice meeting."

"I thought you were only allowed on Olympus during the winter solstice?" I asked.

He scowled. "Since Persephone claimed you and you are now responsible for Persephone's duties while she is away, the Council demands that I attend this summer one as well for I hold a Daughter of Light and Life within my domain. Now, who do you choose to go to the above world with you?"

I prolonged my reply. He was offering me a 24 hour release from the prison I'd willing gone into (and seriously wished I hadn't). I could take any one of the spirits with me and go where ever I liked so long as I was back before sundown today. I could go anywhere. I could take anyone. That was usually forbidden in this realm. It was usually a one-way journey for eternity.

"Anyone?" I asked, hesitant.

"Anyone." he confirmed. I thought about it. I could take Virgil. He'd been banned from the above world after doing some unmentionable things in the above world. I could take one of the spirits back to camp so they could visit their friends. I could even (if I was desperate) take Nico up to visit Italy. I shifted from foot to foot before deciding. I must be  _really_ desperate.

"Nico needs to get out more, doesn't he?" I asked. Hades smiled, if not just a tad creepily.

"And where will you be going?" he asked. I started to say Paris, but stopped mid breath and held up my finger-one sec- before running down to Nico's room. I cop-knocked once on his door before barging in.

Nico sat on his bed with a pixie stick up his nose, a joint in his mouth, and both iPod earbuds in his ears, blaring Avenged Sevenfold's "God Hates Us All" so loud I could hear the lyrics. I watched him inhale on both the pixie stick and the joint before interrupting.

"Nico, what the fuck are you doing?" I asked. He apparently didn't hear me, for he continued with whatever he was doing. I rolled my eyes, stormed over, and slapped him across the face-hard- before ripping the pixie stick out of his nose and the earbuds out of his ears.

"You answer me when I'm talking to you!" I snapped at him.

He gazed at me fuzzily. "Wha-?"

"What the hell do you think you are doing?" I demanded.

"Uh," he looked at me, then at the pixie stick I held. "Maximizing my high?"

"Nico," I sighed, "Really?"

He looked at me, then held out the joint to me happily. "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!"

I looked at it and shrugged. "Eh-what the hell?"


	14. Chapter 14

Two  _hilarious_  hours later, Nico and I sat side-by-side, facing backwards on his bed, sitting atop a stack of pillows and blankets. We were giggling hysterically as we each had in one ear bud of his iPod and were listening to Jim Gaffigan.

So, anyway, we were sitting down in Nico's room (yep, down-he has a dungeon thing going on because he likes clichés), laughing, and stoned off our asses, when I fell backwards. Now normally, when you fall backwards on a bed, it's not that big of a problem. You'll just land on pillows and blankets, maybe hit the wall if you're a retard. But when you're high (in everyway possible) and sitting on it backwards, it poses a bigger problem.

I toppled backwards off the bed, hitting the floor really hard. On my way down, I'd attempted to scramble for a handhold and had only found Nico's waistband. So I dragged him down on top of me by the belt of his skinny jeans and boxers. He clumsily tried to catch himself, but ended up catching himself on my chest. I groaned and threw him off of my.

"No boob shots. Unfair." I whined. I climbed back up and stretched out leisurely like a cat. My hands slid under the coal black silk sheets and my fingers grazed something hard and cold. Curious, I dug around until I unearthed a bottle of imported Russian vodka. Nico popped up, clawing his way back up.

"I was saving it for a special occasion." He slurred.

"Special as in…" I trailed off.

He shrugged. "This works." He ripped the bottle out of my hands and unscrewed the cap, taking a mighty drink out of it. After a few moments of guzzling it, he offered it to me and, mimicking him, I took a few huge gulps out of the bottle. Together we finished of the bottle in a matter of moments.

BAD IDEA.

Before long, we were both in the bathroom. Nico was just fine; he was a little more used to drinking than I was and could hold his liquor pretty well. I, however, drank sparingly (as in this was my first time) and held it like, well, a girl. He held my hair behind my head like the drunken gentleman he was while I barfed up my guts. After I was finished, we retreated back to his bed, pixie-stics and half-smoked joints awaiting us. We finished off the pixie-stic powder first, then ended up listening to "Smack That" by Akon as we finished up.

We laid back, thoroughly stoned, Nico's thin silk sheets swimming around us. We were lying next to each other. Normally that would've been weird (ya know, since I've tried to kill him, what….23 times?) and would've been uncomfortable close, but can you honestly say that we were in the proper state of mind for logical reasoning? My head was on Nico's shoulder, my arms wrapped around his torso. His left arm was around my shoulders and our legs were intertwined.

Then, out of the blue, Nico drops a kiss on my head and whispered three words that froze me where I laid.

_"I love you."_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also kinda shorter than usual. My bad guys.


	15. Chapter 15

"Owww!" I moaned. I sat up and rubbed my temples. I ached everywhere. I was somehow back in my own room, wearing one of Nico's shirts and nothing else. I got my bearings and wearily turned on my iPod so I could get the shock of my life.

My iPod, which is set by international satellites and is never wrong, said that today's date was June 28th. A week after my birthday.

"No, no, no, no…" I muttered. "That shouldn't be right. Yesterday was my birthday, June 21st. It should be June 22nd." I frantically hopped up and dug out my cell phone out of my boxes, which had been moved up to my room, checking the time and date. It also said 3:02 PM on June 28th. Thoroughly freaked out, I ripped out my laptop and booted it up. I waited impatiently for it to turn on. Once I was in, I checked the time. 3:02 PM on June 28th.

I fell back onto my haunches on my cold stone floor. I sat there disbelievingly. How could I have lost a week of memory? The last human contact I remembered was Nico, stoned off his rocker, telling me he loved me. I still didn't know whether or not to believe him. He'd been stoned, so I wasn't holding anything he'd said that night in high regard right now, freaky or not.

I had a sudden idea. Virgil would know. He wasn't supposed to leave my side, or so he'd been ordered. He would know if I'd just suddenly up and disappeared for a week. He had to right? I mean, come on! The princess of the Underworld goes missing and you don't freak out. Yeah, right. I stood up.

"VIRGIL!" I shrieked.

He appeared out of nowhere, like a shadow with a pulse. He regarded me calmly, even though I was only half-dressed (which may or may not have been my Understatement of the Year). He didn't seem at all fazed by my feverish scrambling around as I changed clothes while I dressed.

"Yes Princess Aurora?" he asked softly, his overlong hair hanging down in front of his eyes. His blood red eyes seemed even more terrifying because he was calm.

I glared at him for the princess thing, then demanded "Where's Nico?"

"In his bedroom sleeping off a hangover."

"What day is it?" I asked impatiently.

"June 28th."

"Have you seen me at all in the past seven days?"

"No." For the first time he looked confused. "Hades told me that you were on vacation with Nico in Northern California as a birthday present. A gift from your mother. Why?"

It was the first question Virgil had ever deigned to ask me and though I wish I could answer him, I couldn't. I didn't have a reply. I dropped down heavily on my bed, now wearing pants and clasping my shirt in my hands. I yanked my loose curls into a sloppy bin.

"The last thing I remember," I said slowly, "is me in Nico's bedroom on my birthday. A week ago."

He stared at me. "That can't be true. You called me and told me I had the week off since you were with Nico."

I stared back at him. "Virgil, I'm fucking serious. I can't remember doing that. I don't remember the last week." Following that statement, I tugged my shirt over my head and jogged down the stairs. I stormed past all the spirits, past Hades, downstairs, and into Nico's room.

Nico was passed out on his bed. He wore a white Green Day shirt and cargo shorts. His arm was thrown wide and in his hand he clasped a pair of sunglasses as if he'd been attempting to put them on his nightstand but had been too tired to finish the effort. His usually albino-white skin was just as dark as mine, if not darker, and had a healthy glow to it. His silky black hair was actually sun-dyed brown. Right then and there I was sure that my argument was futile. We hadn't been in the Underworld. There was no way he could look that healthy in a place where Death breeds. If he could, he and Hades would always look like me and Persephone, natural beings of Life and Light.

Speaking of me, I hadn't even thought to look at how I'd changed. I was similar to him. My skin was darker, my black hair was brown, and I glowed with the image of pure and utter health.

My inner-babbling and self-study were interrupted when Nico groaned. I whipped around, and unexpected adrenaline rush flooding my system and leaving my skin flushed. I shouldn't have reacted like that to a  _groan_. I mean, come on, what was I, his mother or something? That thought reminded me with scary accuracy of what Nico had screamed at me weeks earlier before we'd gone to Elysia and met Virgil and I shuddered. My body needed to quit reacting to the tiniest of things.

He rolled over, rubbing his temples just as I had. Contrary to his healthy appearance, he had dark circles beneath his eyes and a moody glare on his face. He saw me and it twisted into a grimace. I felt hurt and shock flood me. What had I done? Did I do something wrong? Was I bad? Why did he dislike me?

I didn't miss the second fleeting glance he shot me and how flushed his skin became at my mere proximity. My hope was suddenly renewed and all of my earlier questions evaporated. We stared at each other until he cleared his throat and spoke.

"So." He said uneasily.

"So." I echoed. "Do you know what day it is?"-he shook his head-"June 28th."

"That's not possible." He said automatically in contradiction to my statement. "Yesterday was June 21st."

"That's what I thought." I conceded. "Virgil?"

Virgil, who was standing quietly until I asked him a question, nodded. "Princess Aurora speaks the truth. Hades told me that as a gift to Aurora, Queen Persephone allowed her to take you to Northern California. You've been gone for a week."

"And you weren't at all worried that Aurora and I were together without godly supervision?" Nico demanded.

Virgil shrugged. "Quite frankly, no. It was peaceful."

"AND THAT DIDN'T TIP YOU OFF?" I screamed. "Virgil, when we are in the same room together, World War III breaks out."

"We're about as subtle as shotguns man!" Nico said, exasperated. Virgil tried to defend himself, but we yelled at him all the same. After I'd had my fill of bitching, I went and ate a hasty breakfast. I was strapping my sword onto my hip when Nico found me.

"Hey." I said dully, forcing myself to ignore the way my heart raced whenever I saw him.

"Hey." He said, blushing furiously and staring at the air next to my head with such determination, I was surprised that he didn't make a vortex. "Hades and Persephone want to talk to us."

"Mom's here?" I asked, surprised. Shouldn't she be in the above world?

He nodded. "Come on."

"Where's Virgil?" I asked as we walked.

"Hades released him." Nico replied. We began to near the closed doors of the throne room and could hear out parents arguing behind it. All awkwardness evaporated as I looked at Nico, he looked at me, and we ran at the door, planting our ears firmly against the ebony wood.

"They find out today."

"…tell them Hades? We can't exactly tell them that their memories were removed or that they're betrothed to be married!"

"WHAT?" we both shrieked, jumping back from the door as if it were electric and we didn't want to be barbequed. Hades and Persephone came out, shocked.

"Aurora, Nico, wait! We can explain!" my mom tried to say, but we didn't give her the chance. I shook my head and whipped around, sprinting away. My surroundings began to blur as I bolted for freedom. I needed to get out of this death trap, to see the real world, smell summer and look at the beautiful nature.

I made it to Los Angeles, stumbling out of DOA Records. It was raining, but that didn't stop me. Within no time, I was soaked. I ran to a stop in an alley, hiding beneath a balcony. I shivered and collapsed against the wall, wrapping my arms around my trembling frame.

"Ah, Aurora May. Pleased to finally meet you. I never thought Hades would let you go." said a smooth voice. I looked up to see an Asian boy with shaggy hair and an eyepatch. The one eye I could see was solid gold.


	16. Chapter 16

**Nico's POV**

"DEATH TO THE INFADEL!" I screamed, spastically pressing the buttons on my iPod. After learning that Aurora and I had A) had our memories removed, B)spent a week in California doing the gods only knew what, and C) oh, that tiny little problem where our parents wanted to MARRY US, we'd split. She'd run out of the Underworld and I don't know what happened to her after that. I'd shadow-traveled away and now Virgil and I were sitting in a cheap hotel room, trying to figure out what our next move was. It probably wasn't a smart move to run away from the gods that had my memories, but the alternative was marrying Gidget and I'm sorry, but for all that I felt when she was in my bedroom, I don't think either of us were ready for that type of commitment, especially when her last attempt on my life was only a day and a half before her birthday.

There was a loud knock, and then someone burst into my room. I'm ashamed to admit that when I looked up, I half-expected it (and half-wanted it) to be Aurora, for that was always how she'd entered my room. I remembered a moment to late that Aurora wasn't here and was most likely on a plane bound for Wyoming. Nope, it was Virgil, the dutiful, loyal, yet disowned ex-Fury that-ya know what? Fuck it. We all know that none of that was true. The only reason Virgil was chilling with me right now was because he had a grudge against Hades for making him P.I.A.' s babysitter (P.I.A.= Pain In the Ass). So Virgil had made it his personal mission to help me stay out of Hades' grasp for as long as possible.

Virgil crashed on the floor next to me. He passed me a Mountain Dew with a scowl as he unscrewed the cap on the bottles of liquor galore that he'd gotten for himself. Hey! At least I was trying to stay clean. If Aurora's birthday had taught me anything (besides to never trust my father or any other god for that matter because they almost sure as hell always had an ulterior motive for helping out) was that I should drink responsibly. Think about it. I'd lost a week of memory people! If I hadn't had a drinking problem or wasn't a demigod, losing a week of memory was NEVER a good thing. Especially if you went to a house, got locked in there with your worst enemy, and then woke up feeling like you wanted nothing more than to rip their skin off like an animal. And have not a clue what happened while you were in that house for a week. I mean, I don't know if either of us is still a virgin or not for Christ's sake!

"So, what are we doing?" Virgil slurred. The bad thing about an immortal drinking is that when they haven't been allowed alcohol in almost 3 thousand years, the alcohol tends to hit them quick when they do drink it.

Since I was still thinking about my memory loss, I said "I wonder what happened."

"Huh?" he asked.

"In that house. I think that's what I wanna do. I think I wanna look for it." I confirmed, speaking more to myself than him.

"What house?" he asked.

"What do you mean _, what house_? THE house man! The one in Cali!" I snapped. "I think I wanna find it. I wanna know what happened while we were there."

Virgil groaned, but never the less sat up. He pulled out his cell phone (I know right, why would he need one?) and opened up his texts. He pulled up the ones Aurora had sent him of the house and I looked at them all closely before handing it back. Most of the pictures were on a seashore, so I could start there. Virgil had also said we were in a part of Northern California, so that was also a lead. We packed up, checked out, and then I shadow-traveled us to Cali.

It wasn't easy. We had to dodge monsters at every turn, make sure we weren't seen, for my father's scouts were everywhere. We hadn't the slightest clue as to where it was, just a general area. A general area that covered hundreds, if not thousands of square miles.

"Well,  _fuck_." I sighed, taking the bottle of Captain Morgan that Virgil was offering me and downing it. "This could take a while."

"Oh gee,  _you think_?" Virgil snarled.

After a week of no luck, Virgil was ready to give up. Quite frankly, so was I, but I had to keep going. This search was the only thing quelling my emotions. I had to force myself to not think about Aurora, had to force myself to not re-evaluate how I felt about her. The days my walls failed, emotions would pour out of me like a faucet. I would nag at myself about tiny quirks I'd observed about her and had refused to act on such as: you need to find Aurora, you know she's claustrophobic, you know she needs her brick wall to lean on, she needs her defenses. I felt nauseated when I thought of Aurora with someone else. I refused to think about if we found the house and she was there. Or if my dad was there. He'd spread the word and now just about every demigod was scouring the country for us two.

No, I had to keep going. Better to be an emotionless rock like my dad than an emotional mess like Percy.


	17. Chapter 17

**Still Nico's POV**

"Oh. My. Gawd! Nico, is that you?" screamed a voice. I flinched, making alcohol slush all the way down the front of me. I looked up moodily to see a blonde beach bunny running towards us. Well, skating towards up, for she was on rollerblades, her blonde hair pulled back into a tight ponytail. On her wrist was a leash that was attached to the hugest mortal dog I'd ever seen.

"And you are?" I demanded, if not a little snippily.

"Don't you remember? It's Kat. Where's Rora? She at home?" she replied with a smile. "Fluffy, no! Down boy. Get off of Nico!" 'Kat' yanked on the leash as her enormous dog leapt up on me.

"Get off me!" I snarled irritably, pushing the dog down and giving its owner a malevolent look that she missed.

"Do I know you?" I demanded.

"Nico, it's me, Kat." She replied in disbelief. "Don't you remember? I went to kindergarten with Rora, but then I moved and we met back out here? She introduced me to you at the bonfire at your guys' place?"

"What bonfire?" I snapped, losing my patience.

"You know, Rora's b-day bonfire! On the beach, next to your guys' house. You should know, you planned the entire damned thing and flew nearly 20 of her closest friends in from Wyoming." Kat looked near to tears.

"Whoa, wait, a beach house? Where?" I demanded, lurching to my feet. She flinched, fear entering her eyes. Virgil snatched my shoulder, restraining me.

"Calm down Nico. Hades will kill me if anything happens to you. Just ask nicely." He admonished, then dropped his voice and hissed "She's our only lead and best shot. Don't blow this."

I took a deep breath. "Look…Kat…I don't remember anything. You, the beach house, the bonfire, nothing. You'd really be helping me out if you could fill in the memory gaps."

She looked at me uncertainly. "You don't remember anything?"

I smiled. "If I did, would I be asking you?"

She smiled back at me with a little touch of 'holier than thou' in her face. "Rora told you to stop drinking or it'd catch up with you. I guess she was right." Then her face creased in sudden panic and she asked "You do remember Aurora, right?"

I laughed. "Gidget's a little hard to forget. Yeah, I remember her. Now, let's start with the beach house. Can you give us an address or something?"

"Better-I can take you there. It's only an hour away." She replied.

"Really? Thanks Kat, you're the best!" I said, amazed.

She laughed. "That's what you said at the bonfire too. Come on, my car's over here." Kat led us to a small jeep a ways away. I dibbed shotgun, since it was my memory that was missing, therefore forcing Virgil to ride bitch with the dog.

**AN HOUR OR SO LATER**

It looked just like in all the pictures. It was huge, baby blue with white trim, had a large wrap-around porch, and a porch swing. There was a two car garage that had a 2011 Dodge Charger in it and an SUV.

"Well, here we are." Kat said. I wasn't listening to her; I bounded up the stairs and to the French glass paned double doors. They weren't locked so they swung open into an empty home. All of the furniture was contemporary and modern: a sectional sofa, surround sound, flat screen TV, every game system a boy could want, the works. The house was bright warm colors and if it weren't for the lack of 'home' feeling, I might've been able to relax, but this house felt too alien to me. I explored the house and found that the only thing that seemed to be missing was me and Aurora. It was like we'd went to sleep for the night and had been taken back to the Underworld.

A small box on the bed stand caught my attention. My stomach twisted nervously as I opened it and saw a diamond ring cradled in the center. The craftsmanship was too fine to have been a store bought ring; I'd made this myself.

"You're joking." I whispered. I stared at the ring until Virgil and Kat caught up to me.

"What's that?" Virgil asked.

"A wedding ring." I replied, sounding a bit strangled. "I think I was going to ask Aurora to marry me."

"Not  _going to-_ you _already have_." Kat clarified. "You asked her at the bonfire. I remember because you'd no sooner than gotten down on one knee when she screamed ' _yes, yes, yes, by all of the gods, yes! I will marry you!_ '"

"I what?" I demanded.

"I think she's trying to say that Aurora's your fiancée." Virgil snickered, trying to not laugh. I glared at him and his laughs subsided into self-conscious coughs.

"Here. We found this in the kitchen. Virgil said it was important." Kat said dismissively. I didn't miss the admiring look she shot Virgil after she held up her hand and passed me Aurora's sword.

My eyes widened. What the hell? How'd that get here? The last time I saw that, it was strapped to Gidget's hip as she bolted out of the Underworld like a bat outta hell. My eyes immediately went to Virgil, who shook his head. Aurora wasn't here, nor had she been here. The sword seemed to have appeared all by itself.

"Time to visit Olympus?" Virgil asked and I nodded grimly.

"Time for some answers."


	18. Chapter 18

**Still Nico's POV**

I stormed through the halls of Olympus. Persephone was up here and she was going to talk, whether she wanted to or not. Percy was up here too. I don't know why, he was probably visiting a god or some shit. They'd all gotten really buddy-buddy since he'd saved their bacon and often made trips up here to visit. He saw me and stopped dead in his tracks. Something in my face stopped him from stopping me as I bore down on Persephone. I really hadn't expected her to be in tears though.

"Nico!" She leapt up, tears staining her cheeks. "Have you see Aurora? Please tell me you have!"

"Uh, no." I said flatly. "Isn't she in Wyoming, that's what she always complained about."

"I checked." Persephone fretted. "She hasn't been there. She was never there. She vanished in LA."

"And I care why?" I asked. I didn't want to yell at her while she was worrying about Gidget, but we were still gonna have this conversation.

"Because Aurora is your fiancée and you swore to me on all that is holy that this marriage will happen and it can't if you won't man up to go find your wife-to-be. If you don't own on that oath di Angelo, you're a dead-man." Hera spat, comforting Persephone.

Now, I never really like Hera, but now she just pissed me off.

"I don't even remember swearing that oath Hera! I'm not going anywhere until Persephone explains what prompted me to even propose to Aurora because before her birthday, she made 23 attempts on my life Hera. I will be damned if I'm marrying her without an explanation. The only way you're getting me to go anywhere beforehand is if I have some real motivation to find Aurora and after the 23 attempts on my life, I'm not feeling so sweet towards her, fiancée or not!" I yelled.

Persephone rose in that 'oh-shit-look-out-a-really-powerful-woman-goddess-chick-thing-is-pissed' way and bore down on me. She looked more like the Queen of the Underworld right now than any other time I'd ever seen her. And it was summer. I'd seen her wrath get up close and personal before, so I took a few steps back.

"Don't forget  _boy_ ," she spat, "I am still Hades' wife and mistress of the Underworld. I  _can_  bind you to tasks." She snarled.

 _Fuck! Shit! Mother-fucker! Dumbass! Idiotic retard! Moron! Son of a Bitch! Shut your god-damned mouth before you end up a pile of ashes!_  I backed up, immediately regretting my temper tantrum. She looked ready to blast me off the face of the Universe and damn me to eternity in Tartarus. And I didn't doubt that she'd do it.

"However," she said, noticeably calmer, "I can bind you to this particular task and there will be loopholes that I will not tolerate." My hopes for living began to look up, but then she reached out with a hand and I jerked, an instinctive 'fight-or-flight' response kicking into my system. She put her hand on my cheek, but I'd quickly learned that you didn't lean away.

A swirl of images rushed into my head and my knees gave out. My skull felt like it was about to break at the seams. I writhed in pain for a few minutes. Above me, I could barely hear Persephone chanting, most likely binding me to a task, most likely to find Aurora. When it was over and I could stand up-well, I couldn't really  _stand up_. I was a little on the shaky side since my vision was still clearing. Gods, I hated it when gods were so sudden about that shit. First Lethe when I was 14, now Persephone. I mean, a heads up would be nice. When were they going to stop getting a kick out of taking my memories and then giving them back later?

Persephone arched an eyebrow at me. "Better? You wanted motivation; now you have it. Find. My. Daughter." With that, she turned and swept away, Hera following her. I steadied myself and Virgil put his hand on my shoulder.

"Dude," he said, "you are so lucky to even be alive right now."


End file.
